Chatham University

Date: Jun 16 2007
Major: History/Histories (art history/etc.) (This Major's Salary over time)
Chatham College was an astounding disappointment for the two years I attended.

The academics are severely lacking. The course catalog on Chatham's website lists majors that are entirely unavailable and courses that haven't been taught within the past decade. Many students find that if they want to complete a major they will be forced to take all their upper level classes at Pitt. Many departments only have one or two professors and a few adjuncts. Internships are unavailable. The "internship" office at Chatham's PACE office is more concerned with finding local babysitting jobs than internships.

And as for the school's motto "world ready women…" I spent the summer of 2006 studying abroad at the Sorbonne in Paris. My transcript from the Sorbonne was never reviewed. When I spoke to the registrar's office about this they said they had "a big stack of papers," with their hands separated so I could get a visual. And this was more than 6 months later. I knew a senior who graduated this year who was not allowed to participate in senior week events because the school never reviewed the credits from when she studied abroad more than a year ago. Furthermore, I wanted to study abroad for a semester but there were NO scholarships or aid provided by the school. Chatham’s study abroad office offers no help for how to obtain a passport, pay, or look for a program. They will only direct you to studyabroad.com then be unable to answer any questions you might have. I know students from other schools have had similar experiences, but when a school has 6 registrars and a total undergraduate population of less than 500 their treatment should be better.

Oh and their environmental focus, students (not Chatham) just started a recycling program this past semester. They boasted their environmental programs and didn’t even bother to recycle. The campus was once a beautiful site. However, Chatham recently destroyed the country’s oldest indoor pool and a local historical site to build a conference room that will be similar to the dozens of such rooms on campus that are never used. Rubble and construction vehicles are now the main centerpiece of campus.

The only department at Chatham that hasn't rapidly declined has been the admissions department. Chatham keeps cramming in more and more students in hopes that more than 50% of them will stay to graduate. However, Chatham's attrition rate is pathetically low. I left because essentially, I was paying 30k a year to receive a second rate education. It was simply not worth the time or money.